Can Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ Take Box Office Top Spot?

There’s good reason for Disney to be revisiting their old classics with new live-action adaptions. Last year’s The Jungle Book, like Cinderella and Alice in Wonderland before it, was a huge success and the House of Mouse will be hoping to replicate those wins with their string of upcoming reboots. In addition to these films, Dumbo, AladdinandThe Lion King all in the works. And, in a few shorts weeks, we will see the release of the live-action Beauty and the Beast. According to THR, the film looks set to be a colossal success:

Early tracking suggests the movie could reach $120 million in its North American debut, according to those with access to pre-release surveys. Disney insiders are being more cautious and saying $100 million-plus, considering tracking hasn’t been entirely reliable as of late.

Even with a slightly smaller figure of around $100 million, the film would close in on two box office goliaths. First, there’s 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the hotly-anticipated superhero battle film which saw Warner Bros. and DC rake in $166.1 million, with 2012’s The Hunger Games closing in with a premiere of $152.2 million.

However, Disney are being very active in their marketing. A host of posters and trailers later, and the film is attracting a lot of attention. CGI and other effects have brought the studio’s stories to life in ways never considered before. The film doesn’t just introduce new audiences to the story. Fans of the 1991 original will see the tale as old as time in a completely new way, as well.

Furthermore, we also have an official synopsis for the film:

“Beauty and the Beast” is the fantastic journey of Belle, a bright, beautiful and independent young woman who is taken prisoner by a beast in his castle. Despite her fears, she befriends the castle’s enchanted staff and learns to look beyond the Beast’s hideous exterior and realize the kind heart and soul of the true Prince within.

Disney‘s Beauty and the Beast opens worldwide on March 17th.

Image: Disney

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David Lifton

Staff Writer for GeekFeed. I am a newspaper columnist by day; but by night I am a writer with an unending obsession for all things sci-fi.